Privilege & community

This past weekend in Philadelphia I had the privilege to attend a presentation and discussion led by Joaquin Cienfuegos of Cop Watch LA, a grassroots organization that monitors the police in Los Angeles. Cop Watch chapters raise awareness about police harassment, brutality, and murder in cities across the United States. They are also involved in community outreach, education, and assistance.

The talk and discussion were thought-provoking for several reasons. I was reminded (and inspired) once again by how much can be accomplished by an organized group of citizens with dedication, persistence, and simple tools like video cameras. Aside from documenting brutality, members of the organization have stopped police harassment and likely prevented further misbehavior by police simply by being present at places where police are "at work." These activists work in the communities in which they live, educating people about their rights when dealing with the police and about how to end oppression and create security within their neighborhoods without relying on the police. Their purpose is very much to reclaim autonomy for citizens and secure liberty where the state has taken them away.

Sitting in the meeting room and hearing commentary from the speaker as well as from community activists in Philadelphia brought to my mind the stark differences between my life as a white female and the lives of others. I thought of my time in a diverse neighborhood in West Utica, where my calls to the police were always answered promptly while others often waited and waited. On more than one occasion police treated me differently than they treated individuals of other ethnicities who lived on the streets of my neighborhood. I overheard and was disturbed by racist behavior on the part of some of the citizens in that neighborhood as well.

Although I tried earnestly to "get involved" in my community and work with my neighbors to improve living conditions and end inequality in West Utica, I did not have a full picture of just how difficult police terrorism and other neighborhood issues (gentrification) are for some citizens. The discussion this past weekend helped me connect some of those dots and widened my perspective. Although it is heartening to sit in a big circle and watch citizens of all ethnicities discuss problems, vent frustrations, recount personal stories, and brainstorm solutions, it is disheartening to me to see how much racism and hatred are still alive, well, and thriving in the places where we live. I am privileged in many ways, and even if I recognize and acknowledge it as unfair, I still benefit from it.

It is not enough to eradicate racism and other -isms from our personal thoughts and actions. What is needed is an acknowledgment of what has happened and what is happening in our communities and a re-dedication to unify ourselves against the forces that create the divides in the first place and against the corruption that depends on the persistence of division. No community is immune to the effects of complacency and the destructive force of capitalism and its agents.